An Acallam na nÉces Samhain Special In this seasonal special, the Story Archaeologists compare two stories of Samhain.  But what could such stories tell us about life 100 or even 1,000 years ago? Find out as the Story Archaeologists, Chrus and Isolde, go digging one dark night. I am reposting this episode, one of my personal favourites and mone of the most popular, ever. Links for this Episode http://archive.org/details/legendsofsaintss00hyde - Legends of Saints and Sinners (Douglas Hyde). http://archive.org/details/fairyandfolktale33887gut - Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry (W. B. Yeats). http://www.celt.dias.ie/publications/celtica/c21.html - Celtica Vol. 21. The journal of the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies; School of Celtic Studies (includes the article Echtrae Nerai and its analogues by Seán Ó Coileáin pp. 427–440).

Banbha Banbha is one of the three Dé Danann sisters, daughters of Ernmas, who gave their names to the land of Ireland, Ériu is the best known of the the three but Banbha has another, older, and less well known story to tell. Join Chris as she celebrates the birth of a new granddaughter named Banbha. Links for this episode Take a look at the translation of The book of Invasions, The Lebor Gabála The Lebor Gabála Érenn at a Glance: an Overview of the 11th Century Irish Book of Invasions. Author: Lloyd D. Graham. This is a very useful aid to gaining a handle on the interactions and familial connections of the characters. It includes very helpful tables and even graphs . The Irish National Origin-Legend: Synthetic Pseudohistory Author: John CareyThis is an excellent paper concerning how and why the Lebor Gabála Érenn may have been constructed. It was written a few years ago now but it is still rvery informative. Otherworld Women in Early Irish Literature Author: Heather C KayI only discovered this wonderful paper as I was completing this episode. I will be referencing it again, I am quite certain.. Story Archaeology links for this episode For information on the Cath Maige Tuired or check out these links for texts. Creation Stories: A comparison of the Book of Invasions with other foundation stories. For the story of the two quarreling poet swineherds and bertayal of birth customs in the Táin cycle go to Series 6 'Circling the Táin' through the top navigation or through the link. For a new 'take' on the Lebor Gabála Érenn listen to the Stories in the Landscape conversation ‘The Writing of the Takings’.with Jamie Madden

The festival of Samhain, is one that has been celebrated, in one form or another, for a very long time. In the early Irish stories it was a time for gatherings and feasting. But how has it changed in more recent times? Join Chris as she explores The 'Schools' Folklore collection'' finding some fascinating Halloween tales. Links for this episode Take a look at Allison's Gilbari's paper The Landscape of Halloween: A study of the landscape of Irish Halloween folklore and archaeology. I will be coming back to this excellent paper, soon, in Ramble 14 Find out about the Halloween tradition of 'Souling' Take a listen to the 'Soul Cake' song. Take a look at a very interesting map illustrating the number of places in the world where Halloween is now celebrated. And, of course, explore the Schools' Collection for yourself. Story Archaeology Links for this episode Stories to Remember : More about the Schools' Collection The Voyage of Mael Duin (and the sticky ball of wool!) And take a listen to my favourite Samhain podcast 'special': Corpse Carrying for Beginners

Designed by Morgane Suquart for 'Paris 24' Olympics opening ceremony. This 'Ramble' is inpired by the silver rider on the River Seine at the Paris 24 Olympics. So join Chris as she explores the history and mythology of three great rivers, the Seine, the Severn and the Shannon and discovers just how their stories may just meander together. Explore a gallery page of images of places explored in this podcast. A selection of 'Story Archaeolgy' links for this episode Sinann podcast conversation Sinann in the Metrical Dindshenchas The dindshencas poems ÁTH LÍAC FIND Medb and her sisters Imbás: Poetry, Knowledge and Inspiration The Romano British temple at Lydney The Fisher King And a few External Links A useful article on Sequana The Pocklington Chariot excavation The Lochnashade trumpets EX Voto items from Sequana temple complex (Dijon).

New Scientific evidence supporting the origin of the altar stone at Stonhenge supports a better understanding of the of societal connections and collaborative co-operation to be found between the communities of early neolithic farmers throughout Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales. Join Chris in this new ramble and share her excitement! Links for this Episode Listen to 'A Conversation with Anthony Murphy' (This conversation is referenced throughout this Ramble) News of the new evidence on the Altar stone, Stonehenge from the BBC News of the discovery from 'The Guardian.' A short youtube video on the discovery. Further information on the discovery of the original bluestones location in Wales, This is the article that I quote in the podcast.

The SchoolsCollection | dúchas.ie The National Folklore Schools Collection was compiled in 1937 with stories and memories collected with the support of schools from all over Ireland. Itis one of Ireland's unique and valuable treasures and a wonderful resource. Join Chris as she explores this collection including its current relevanceand considers whar a similar collecton might look like if gathered now, in 2024, some 87 years later. Search the Schools Folklore collection for yourself Links for this episode A Comversation with Anthony Murphy Chris' Ramble 6~ Just how old are Irish Stories Goibniu and the Gobbán Sáor The Legend of Knockmany Hill – a late tale of Cú Chulainn

Newgrange at Twilight ~ Anthony Murphy Anthony Murphy, is an author, journalist, astronomer and photographer. He also curates the wondeful Mythical Ireland website. Join Chris and Anthony as they explore how Irish mythological stories, supported by recent evidence from genertics, seem to reflect the remarkable story of both neolithic and bronze age Ireland. This is a slightly longer 'Conversation in the Landscape' than usual but why not? There is so much to explore in this fascinating topic . Links for this episode First and foremost here is the link to Anthony's impressive webite Mythical Ireland 'New Light on the Distant Past'. There is so much to discover and learn on this site. This is the link to the article that inspired me to contact Anthony and invite him to share this conversation. The Beaker People and their Replacement of Neolithic DNA. ~ Is this remembered in Irish Myth? The new henge of Newgrange ~ A once-in-a-lifetime discovery. Read Anthony's blog article on the implications of the 2020 A-DNA discoveries Explore Books by Anthony Murphy Links to other books, talks and articles referenced in our conversation Professor J.P Mallory : Talk: Genetic Geneology Ireland (Belfast 18) Book: In Search of the Irish Dreamtime Professor Mallory on The Beaker People arrival in Ireland Lara Cassidy, (2020). Ancient DNA in Ireland: Isolation, immigration and elite incest. British Archaeology The Horse, The Wheel and Language by David Anthony (PDF format) Story Archaeology Links Chris Ramble 6: Just how old are the Irish stories? Brú na Bóinne and Cnogba - the Boyne Valley in the Metrical Dindshenchas: (Isolde's translations) The Dindshenchas of Knowth - Cnogba: (Isolde's translations) The Dindshenchas of Brug na Bóinde And for conversations, articles and translations based on a wide variety of Irish myths and stories, some of which we discussed in this conversation, explore the Archive through the page top navigation or, of course explore 'Mythical Ireland' for more Irish stories and their settings.

Grianstad an Gheimhridh, the winter solstice is that special moment when the year turns and the hours of daylight, begin slowly to increase. This time of year has long been a cause for reflection and celebration. So, join Chris on yet another ramble, as she explores an Irish Winter Solstice journey. Links for this episode Links on Story Archaeology The Craneskin Bag A Christmas card from the Archaeologists. Extolling the Holly A Satirical Tale of Extreme Gastronomy Fair’s Fair The Dagda’s Cauldron The Dagda’s Cauldron ~ A home-brew supplemental Some Questions answered by the Story Archaeologists This one covers both a discussion of poets' grades and titles as well as , 'Who were the Celts?' A Conversation with Patrick Nunn Edge of Memory and Worlds in Shadow, (information On Patrick Nunn's books.) Read Candles in the Window an anthology of Longford Christmas memories An Archdruid in his Judicial Habit from Costume of the Original Inhabitants of the British Isles (1815) by Samuel Rush Meyrick and Charles Hamilton Smith. Useful External Links Images of Newgrange in the past, before the excavations Mythical Ireland website Newgrange: The Winter Solstice reports, image and videos of Winter Solstice sunrises over the last twenty years. Information about Iron age burials in earlier tomb structures.

Professor Ralph Kenna As many friends of Story Archaeology will now have heard, Professor Ralph Kenna passed away and left the world we know, last Thursday. I received the sad news from his wife, Claire, last Friday. It is so very sad that it has taken me a few days to feel ready to write this post. I will stay in touch with Claire, and have sent her my deepest condolences but if any of you wish to leave a message of sympathy below I will willingly forward it on to his family. You can also send messages of sympathy through the link below. It feels as though Ralph has been a friend and colleague for years, but in fact, he first contacted me in early 2020. The impact he has had on me, and the work of Story Archaeology. in that time. is considerable. He now leaves a creative, imaginative, enthusiastic 'Ralph-shaped-space' but in his support for Irish Mythology through the 'Art for Sinann' competition and the on-going ÉIRÍ project, he has passed us an important legacy. I am certainly not, in any way, qualified to speak to his work as a statistical physicist. I clearly recall his patience in our first, quite lengthy, online conversation, as he tried to explain the processes that lead to his ground-breaking paper Maths Meets Myths: Quantitative Approaches to Ancient Narratives. I did read it, or did my best to read it, but I did appreciate that this process represented a innovative method of comparing the characters and structures of myth from various places and times, gathering some illuminating and very useful data. It was an inspiring cross-discipline approach; a way of working I very much admire! I also discovered that this paper, first presented in Moscow, was one of the most downloaded papers of the year! And, of course I mustn't forget that about a year ago, November last year, I think it was, he also published a futher paper, based on a similar approach, on the Kyiv bylyny cycle, the East Slavic epic narratives originating in modern-day Ukraine. Impressive! But I want to talk about Ralph's impact on Irish Mythology. I was delighted when I received Ralph's email, especially when I discovered that he was a longtime listener to Story Archaeology and was more than happy to help when he told me about his plans for a new project based on the character of Sinann, who gave her name to the River Shannon. Ralph had followed our explorations on Sinann, supported by Isolde's own translations, since the first episode of Story Archaeology. He was more than irritated when plans were made to set up a male, 'river god' sculpture in his home town of Athlone. In 2020, Ralph created a well-funded competition to raise awareness of Sinann and together, in October, with the support of Daniel Curley from Rathcroghan and Mal Rivers from the Irish Post, we launched the Art for Sinann competition, offering three prizes of 1000 euros. Ralph was also very active in promoting events to raise awareness of Sinann in Athlone. But Ralph didn't want to stop there! Data he had gathered in his papers on quantative approaches to ancient narratives, including the new paper on the Irish hero Fráoch’, demonstrated strong evidence suggesting more active agency of women ,in Irish stories, than in story cycles from other countries. I must admit, I was delighted with this. I always felt that this was the case, but here was real supporting evidence. We talked this over in one of our lengthy online chats and launched a second even bigger and better project in 2021, Ralph came up with the acronym ÉIRÍ for the event. This arts and information project was not only intended to promote the centrality of women in early Irish stories but was also designed to resonate with the celebration of the position of women in Ireland in the recent past, now, and in the future. You can find out all about the ÉIRÍ. competition on Story Archaeology, of course, and there are also several podcast episodes that explore the journeys of a...

The Táin Bó Cúailnge is an dramatic epic well worth the telling but with some challenging themes including broken loyalties and friendships with destruction laid on the land, for the sake of status and honour. Join Chris as she explores the telling of the tales and encounters a fresh resonance for our times. Links for this episode For podcast episodes and related articles on The boyhood deeds of Cú Chulainn, his training with Scathach, the birthpangs of Ulster, and more. For the podcst episode on Macha For related articles and textual translations concerning Macha (episode 2) For podcast episodes and related material on The stoy of Medb and her sisters; Fled Bricrenn or The further adventures of Nera (Series 3, episodes 3 to 9) For the original story of Nera and his Samhain adventure in the Otherworld For information on the Roscommon schools projects including the on-line Oenachs

The The Lebor Gabála tells of a series of mythical Irish migration stories, which can be traced back to a very early date. Its history is somewhat complex and, although fascinating, it is not an 'easy read'. So, join Chris and Jamie as they share Jamie's new telling. 'The Writing of The Takings'. Jamie has created an entertaining and highly amusing interpretation, which gets to the heart of how and why these mythical migration stories were so valued. Read the full version of The Writing of the Takings. Highly recommended! Jamie is planning to record an audio version of 'The Writing of the Takings'. I will add a link to this as soon as it is available. Meanwhile, find out more about Jamie's writing on Jamiemadden.org About the Lebor Gabála / The Book of Invasions or the Book of the Taking of Ireland The ‘Book of Invasions’ (‘Leabhar Gabhála’ in modern Irish) is not the name of a specific manuscript. Rather it is an origin legend of the Irish people that exists in many variant versions, in poetry and prose. The origins of the tradition can be traced to the seventh century, although the earliest surviving manuscripts are much later. The story was extensively reworked in verse form in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Over time, prose versions were derived from the poetry, and additional historical material was added. It was revised again in the seventeenth century by the team of historians known as the Four Masters. It continued to be accepted as a plausible story of the settlement of people on the island of Ireland long after that. The core of the story of the peopling of Ireland was built on top of biblical traditions. It begins with Noah and the Flood, and Noah’s granddaughter Cesair (she does not feature in the Bible), who was said to be the first to arrive in Ireland. The next wave involved the Parthalonians, descendants of Japhet, son of Noah, but they succumbed to plague. The third wave of settlers, descendants of Nemed, were vaguely related to the Parthalonians. The Nemedians were eventually defeated by the Formorians. Some Nemedians later returned from Greece as the Fir Bolg. They, in turn, were replaced by the Tuatha Dé Danann. A second strand traces other descendants of Japhet, including Fénius Farsaid and his grandson, Goídel Glas (the term ‘Gael’ is traced to him). Later, Breóghan, descended from Goídel Glas, viewed Ireland from a tower in Galicia on a clear night. His grandson, Míl Espáine, went to Ireland, where he defeated the Tuatha Dé Danann. The Clann Mhíleadh (‘sons of Míl’), Ír, Éibhear and Éireamhón and their descendants, became established in Ireland. From https://www.ria.ie/leabhar-gabhala-book-invasions